Enlargement

2019 – membership negotiations between the European Union and the Western Balkan countries have come to a standstill; France and the Netherlands have put in a veto. This has toppled many a political career, including the one of Albania’s charismatic and unconventional Prime Minister, who won his last election with the promise of leading Albania into the EU. But what to do when the political base is crumbling? Fate Vasa, poet laureate, has an idea: The Prime Minister must take on the role of the great national hero Skanderbeg, who defended his country against the Ottomans in the 15th century and who is a symbol for the unity of all Albanians. For the one who rallies the Albanians of the Kosovo, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia and even the Albanian communities in southern Italy, Germany and Turkey under one cause, will turn Albania into Greater Albania and into a major European power. In order to do so, he should wear Skanderbeg’s helmet with the bizarre goat’s head, that is currently displayed in a museum in Vienna. Unfortunately, it’s too small for the Prime Minister, which is why an ornamental blacksmith from Tirana is tasked with recreating it. But before he can fix the issue, both helmets disappear simultaneously and a furious international hunt starts, involving members from Europol as well as members from the Albanian mafia, and some others who wish to remain unrecognized.

Meanwhile, politics go on and Albania’s Prime Minister invites the heads of the governments of the Balkan countries, the foreign ministers of the EU countries as well as the entirety of the EU delegates to gather on the SS Skanderbeg, a large Albanian cruise ship on its maiden voyage. What happens during this unofficial Balkans Summit, is the kind of stuff dreams are made of – or rather nightmares?

Menasse aims once again at the great questions: how can people living in very different political systems, shaped by different cultural surroundings and histories, find a common ground and form a union or alliance? Do all so called Western societies in the 21st century really share the often-invoked common values? In a kaleidoscope made of more than a dozen voices, he interweaves fascinating individual stories with the history of Europe of the last century – placing it in a global perspective. The result is a unique narrative, a haunting novel.

»Menasse’s insightful portrayal of the state of play in twenty-first century EU politics is both a thought-provoking analysis of the ongoing challenges faced by the European project, as well as a lively and humorous take on the political dimensions of human lives.« Jury recommendation, New Books in German

»Robert Menasse is well acquainted with the cultural history of his setting. … A story of biblical severity that is contrasted with the legal opinions of the political organization Menasse has committed himself to … as a dedicated intellectual.« Katharina Teutsch, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung

»The rapid change of settings, the fast-paced scenes that are so realistic especially in their exaggeration, the exciting plot, the historical dimension of the current lust for power, a crazy symbolic goat-helmet and, last but not least, the numerous characters who are memorable in the best sense, demonstrate the almost cinematic quality to this prose. ... Enlargement simply must be turned into a movie.« Carsten Otte, taz am wochenende

»Menasse aims for nothing more and nothing less than an epic of our time. So far, the author has not overreached himself. The worldliness of his project remains unparalleled.« Björn Hayer, der Freitag

»Robert Menasse continues his great European story ...« Alexandra Föderl-Schmid, Süddeutsche Zeitung

»The cogs mesh like clockwork. One feels instantly at ease in this narrative. ... The scenes are vivid and lively, the sentences clear.« Michael Wurmitzer, der Standard

»Menasse counters the visionless status-quo-thinking, racism and nationalism with a lot of irony and sarcasm.« Annette König, SRF 2

»... always close to reality and packed with detailed research. In short, Enlargement is the sum of Menasse’s lifelong preoccupation with the European Union and its political contradictions.« ORF

»A gripping novel with an urgent political purpose.« Fintan O’Toole, New York Review of Books on The Capital

»Drolly comic. A major book about coincidences, of linked and overlapping meanings. Deeply humane.« Dwight Garner, The New York Times on The Capital